THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's volleyball team plays host to East Coast Conference rivals New York Institute of Technology (Oct. 11) and LIU Post (Oct. 12) this weekend…both matches begin at 11 a.m. at Lumsden Gymnasium.
Saturday, Oct. 11
New York Tech at Daemen - 11 a.m.
Lumsden Gymnasium, Amherst, N.Y.
LIVE VIDEO
Sunday, Oct. 12
LIU Post at Daemen - 11 a.m.
Lumsden Gymnasium, Amherst, N.Y.
LIVE STATS / LIVE VIDEO
THE COACHES: Mark Parisi is in his 10th year as head women's volleyball coach at Daemen…he recorded his 150th career victory following a 3-0 victory over Mercy College on Sept. 28 and owns a 150-169 (.470) career record. Success has been the norm in recent years, as the Wildcats have posted at least 23 wins in each of the last three seasons and have claimed back-to-back (2012, 2013) United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national championships...Gail Wasmus is in her 29th season as head volleyball coach at NYIT...she entered the 2014 season with a career record of 530-370 (.589) and ranked 13th in career wins among active NCAA Division II coaches...the 2010 ECC Coach of the Year, she has guided the Bears to the NCAA Tournament each of the last three seasons (9 total appearances)…Shellane Ogoshi is in her sixth season as head women's volleyball coach at LIU-Post and entered the 2014 season with a 99-67 (.596) career record…she has led the Pioneers to the NCAA Tournament in each of the last two seasons.
MOVE TO II: Daemen is in Candidacy Year Three of the NCAA Division II membership process. Daemen has been accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) and began playing full regular-season conference schedules last fall. The College will also maintain its affiliation with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) for postseason opportunities, as it will not be eligible for the ECC or NCAA postseason during Candidacy Year Three.
THE HISTORY: The Wildcats have a very limited history with their two opponents this weekend…Daemen and New York Tech will meet for just the fourth time Saturday…the teams split their two meetings last year….the Bears posted a 3-0 victory (25-18, 25-12, 25-16) on Long Island...Shelby Cable totaled 17 kills and 11 digs to lead the way, while Marija Jovanivic registered 39 assists...Ye Wang (7 asts) and Paige Tilert (15 digs) paced the Wildcats…the Wildcats answered with a 3-0 win (25-20, 25-22, 25-19) at Lumsden Gym…Amber Drzymala led a balanced attack with seven kills and 12 digs…Savanah Donarski paced the Bears with 13 kills…the Wildcats and NYIT met for the first time ever during a tri-match at Roberts Wesleyan in 2012...Daemen dropped the first set 27-25, before winning the next three (25-22, 25-21, 25-14) to secure the win...Daemen and LIU-Post met for the first time ever last year...the Pioneers posted a 3-1 victory (23-25, 25-15, 25-9, 25-17) on Long Island...Shelby McCool led a balanced attack with 12 kills, while Lulu Centro handed out 34 assists...Ye Wang had a team-high 13 kills for Daemen…the Wildcats responded with a 3-1 victory (25-17, 14-25, 25-22, 26-24) at Lumsden Gym…Ye Wang led the way with 14 kills, while Brittany Anthon added 11 kills and 13 digs…Melissa Hansen (11 kills, 4 blocks) and Lulu Centro (32 assists) paced the Pioneers.
THE WILDCATS (1-18; 1-5 ECC): Daemen returns 10 players from last year's team that posted a 23-10 record and claimed its second-straight USCAA championship...Daemen went 10-6 in the competitive East Coast Conference last fall and was voted third in the ECC preseason poll this year…graduation took its toll with the loss of the team's top setter and defensive specialist, and Parisi must also overcome the loss of middle blocker Ye Wang who has decided to red-shirt the 2014 season…a two-time USCAA All-America selection, Wang also earned first-team All-ECC honors last fall after leading the team in kills (397) and blocks (97)…seniors Lindsey Nowak and Chelsea Turcer and sophomore Amber Drzymala top the list of returning players…Nowak was a first-team USCAA All-America selection last fall after ranking second on the team in kills (296) and third in blocks (38)…Turcer ranked second on the team in assists (487), third in service aces (38) and fifth in digs (164)…Drzymala played in 28 of 33 matches as a freshman and totaled 263 digs, 144 kills and 32 service aces…newcomers Katie McKrell, Jenna Reeser and Jakki Steck have all made an immediate impact…the Wildcats opened ECC play with losses to Roberts Wesleyan (3-0), Dowling (3-0) and Bridgeport (3-0), before posting a 3-0 league win over Mercy on Sept. 28…the Wildcats suffered ECC losses to Queens (3-1) and Molloy (3-0) last weekend and are coming off a 3-1 non-league loss to Edinboro this past Tuesday…Nowak has recorded double-digit kills in 12 of the last 15 matches and had a career-high 21 kills in a recent 3-2 loss to Kutztown…she leads the team in kills (213) and blocks (23) and ranks fourth in digs (67)…Drzymala had a career-high 22 kills and a season-high 21 digs in a 3-2 loss to Kutztown…she leads the team in digs (180) and service aces (27) and ranks second in kills (170)…McKrell had 63 assists in the five-set loss to Kutztown and has recorded at least 20 assists in the last six matches…she has totaled a team-high 365 assists and ranks third in digs (72)…additional production has come from Turcer (169 digs), sophomore Ryanne Dugan (104 assists), Reeser (119 kills, 21 blocks) and Steck (64 kills)…Reeser equaled her season-high for kills (14) in the loss to Edinboro Tuesday night.
THE BEARS (8-10, 4-2 ECC): New York Tech was picked third in the ECC preseason poll...the Bears finished 27-7 overall (12-4 ECC) last year and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament…the Bears were hit hard by graduation, losing all-conference performers Shelby Cable, Savannah Donarski and Marija Javanovic...NYIT won seven of their first 11 matches in 2014, but are just 1-6 over their last seven…NYIT hosts New Haven Thursday (Oct. 9) and plays at Roberts Wesleyan Friday (Oct. 10) before squaring off against Daemen Saturday…NYIT's four league wins have come against LIU Post (3-1), Molloy (3-0), Mercy (3-2) and Queens (3-1), while its two ECC losses have come against Bridgeport (3-0) and Dowling (3-0)…freshman Emily Mankowski had a season-high 18 kills in a recent 3-2 loss to Caldwell and has totaled a team-high 188 kills…she also leads the team in service aces (22) and ranks fourth in digs (96)…fellow rookie Allison Fowler handed out a season-high 61 assists in the loss to Caldwell and has totaled a team-high 381 assists...additional production has come from freshman Karolina Moderova (154 kills, 20 aces, 154 digs, 42 blocks), juniors Kate Brock (130 kills, 73 blocks) and Becky Syers (272 digs).
THE PIONEERS (8-10, 3-3 ECC): LIU-Post was picked first in the ECC preseason poll...the Pioneers posted a 25-10 record (11-5 ECC) and claimed the NCAA Division II Tournament East Regional title…junior Rachel Ringor and senior Lulu Centro top the list of returning players…Ringor was named ECC Libero of the Year last fall after totaling 605 digs…Centro collected second-team all-conference honors after handing out 1,252 assists…the Pioneers posted three-straight wins over Stonehill (3-0), Dowling (3-0) and Molloy (3-0) two weeks ago, but entered the weekend riding a four-match losing streak…the Pioneers suffered a 3-1 loss at New Haven this past Tuesday and play at Roberts Wesleyan Saturday (Oct. 11) before facing Daemen on Sunday (Oct. 12)…freshman Danielle Valenza recorded a season-high 20 kills during a season-opening win over Saint Leo and has totaled a team-high 188 kills…she also ranks third in both digs (132) and blocks (38)…Centro handed out a season-high 46 assists in the win over Saint Leo and has totaled 400 assists…Ringor had 19 digs in a 3-0 loss to Franklin Pierce last week and has totaled a team-high 230 digs…she also leads the team in service aces (28)…additional production has come from junior Melissa Hansen (103 kills, 61 blocks) and sophomore Analise Austin (96 kills, 135 digs).
HOME SWEET HOME: Daemen is 18-8 at Lumsden Gym since the start of the 2011 season.
ROAD WARRIORS: Daemen has played 130 matches since the start of the 2011 season and 104 of the 130 matches have been played away from the friendly confines of Lumsden Gym. The Wildcats are 59-45 (.567) on the road since the start of the 2011 season.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats close out a four-match home stand Wednesday (Oct. 15) when they host rival Roberts Wesleyan College in an East Coast Conference match…Click HERE to view Daemen's complete schedule.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College athletics on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
